


Oh But This Is A Warmth (Clutch At Your Chest And Breathe)

by Krasimer



Series: Falling Off An Edge (Looking As You Leap) [2]
Category: LazyTown
Genre: And Robbie is afraid, And he doesn't want to admit how much he cares, But his new family confuses him, Depressed Robbie Rotten, Don't worry this is a happy story, Especially about the kids, Fae Robbie Rotten, If he cares he can lose them, M/M, Robbie Rotten has a good family, Sportacus can consume honey - - In limited quantities
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-11
Updated: 2017-01-11
Packaged: 2018-09-16 18:48:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,829
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9285269
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Krasimer/pseuds/Krasimer
Summary: They came to a halt with the park in sight but out of earshot. "What about Stephanie?""She likes dancing and throwing herself into the same, almost psychotic exercises that you do. As she has gotten older and been left in this silly little town, she has taken more of an interest in the jobs that both you and the mayor perform. She dyes her hair pink because of someone she lost and," Robbie looked up, frowning. "...I like to make certain there's a new dye kit in her mailbox when her roots start showing. The first time it happened while she was here, she didn't leave the house for a week. Her friends were loud and annoying with their worry for her.""Admit it," came a voice from off to Robbie's right. "You actually do like us."





	

The knock at his door was starting to be familiar and he wasn't sure it should be.

If it was familiar, then it was something he could lose. If he could lose it, that usually meant that someone could take it away. Robbie got up slowly, wandering over to the entrance that was accessible from behind the billboard with the cow. "You can come in, you know," he called up, having reached to press the button for the speaker he had long ago rigged up. "I'm not going to stop you."

"Ah, but it is rude to enter without knocking!"

"That didn't stop you that first time," Robbie answered dryly, smiling slightly when Sportacus landed gracefully on his feet in the lair. "Mister 'Enters to fix heating and leave food and blankets'. You entered just _fine_ at that time."

"Is that my new name?" Sportacus laughed, brushing off the front of his shirt. "It is awfully long. Quite a mouthful."

Robbie's cheeks flushed, something that had been happening far too often for his comfort lately. "If you don't like it, I suppose I could go with something else. Perhaps, 'Target Practice' or 'Cannon Fodder', if those would suit you better. We-" he broke off, his gaze focused on where Sportacus was pulling something from his bag. "What are you doing?"

"My father has written me another letter," Sportacus handed over a small box. "Despite our shared inclination towards sportscandies, he sent this for you. They are from Iceland, a small candy company he found by asking quite a few people. He thought you would like them," he pulled something else out from the bag he'd pulled from seemingly nowhere. "As well as a letter tucked inside the one for me, addressed specifically to you. He has asked me to ask you if you would not mind sharing your address so that he may mail things directly to you."

"If-" Robbie studied the small box in his hands, a little overwhelmed. "This is Nóa Konfekt. You've told me that your father is like you, if not even more intense about being healthy, what in the hell is he doing, sending me chocolates?"

"He found out who you are and now he wants to make sure you feel happy," Sportacus held out the letter. "Do not forget, this is for you. He also wants to know what he should call you, considering that he does not think you are named after your grandfather," he smiled when Robbie took the letter, settling himself on the chair that had since been pulled out of storage for him to use. An apple was pulled out of his bag next, held to his lips for a moment while he looked at Robbie. "Don't tell him if you don't want to."

Robbie flopped into his armchair, the box of chocolates in his lap and the letter held in trembling hands. "Why is he being nice?"

"Because you are special to me," Sportacus grinned. "If he were to meet you in person, he would be nice because you are nice to be around. For now, it is because you are important in my life and he wants to make sure I am treating you well."

The letter was written in Icelandic and it made something surge in Robbie's chest, a sort of gratitude. It felt like a comfort, almost like belonging somewhere again.

With a soft sigh, Robbie settled in to read the letter, eventually curling up in his chair, his legs over one arm and the back of his head resting on the other. It was full of well wishes, a nearly tangible protectiveness he hadn't felt since before his mother's death, and a protection charm.

Literally.

It dropped out of the last fold of the paper, carved out of some sort of purple stone that felt warm in his hands. The purpose of it was obvious and immediate, a sort of shield rising from the surface of it to envelope Robbie. "He," his voice was hoarse in the way that Sportacus had come to realize meant he was trying not to have a breakdown. "Was this meant for me?"

"Hm?" Sportacus looked at what he was holding and nearly laughed. "Oh, yes. I got a blue one. With Glanni Glæpur looking for you, my father made one for both of us. Yours was designed to fit in a locket or something if you wanted it to. Mine fits in one of the other spaces of my chestplate, next to my crystal."

"I- This isn't-" Robbie's mouth moved uselessly for a few more seconds, stuttered half-syllables making it out and not much else. Eventually, he settled on saying, "No one ever wants to _protect_ me."

"I want to protect you," Sportacus stood up and moved over to Robbie. He dropped to his knees, bracing his chin on the arm of the chair that Robbie's knees were hooked over. "I was not lying when I said that I found you wonderful to be around," he nudged, gently and cautiously, against Robbie's ankle. "I asked him to send something I could give to you to protect you. My father is very good at carving the charms, my mother is very good at spelling them. Her letter is still not yet arrived, but when it has I suspect there will be something more for you as well."

"...They know I'm a _villain_ , right?"

"Still pretending," Sportacus offered his hands to Robbie, pulling him out of his chair when he took them. "Come, I want to prove something to you," he grabbed his bag, slinging it over a shoulder before exiting the bunker, knowing without checking that Robbie was following him.

 

When they pulled themselves out of the hatch and stepped onto firm ground, Robbie scowled. 

"Where are we going?"

"The children are at the park today," Sportacus said instead of answering directly. "You remember how old they are. Stephanie is nearly-"

"Thirteen, yes, yes, I remember," Robbie's arms were crossed over his chest, one hand curled into a tight fist around the purple charm-stone. "Her birthday is in a month or two, when this damn final slush of winter goes away."

"And when did she first arrive in Lazytown?"

"When she was nine," the taller man grumbled the words out. "Or ten, I don't remember the exact date. She arrived and you followed after because of a letter."

"What is Ziggy's favorite candy?"

"Taffy, the boy gets it _everywhere_ and refuses to learn how to clean it off things himself. Perhaps, in a year, when he's ten, I can finally get it through his head."

"Stingy's car is...?"

"One of his favorite things," Robbie sighed. "If he would just let me tune up the engine, then it would stop making that odd noise when he drives it and I could sleep better for it. Unfortunately for me and _everyone else,_ he refuses because it's _his_."

Sportacus smiled, taking Robbie's unclenched hand in his own. "Pixel's favorite game?"

"Trick question," snorting out a laugh, Robbie shook his head. "That boy loves any sort of video game he can get his hands on. Even better is when someone gives him some sort of technology. If he were up for it, I have some things he could practice with, when it comes to building machines that do what he wants them to. He does, however, have a least favorite game and even _mentioning_ it in his presence is enough to set him off on a rant about it."

"Trixie's favorite thing?"

"That _adorable_ little reprobate is a fan of anything loud and destructive. Give her some markers or paint to vandalize buildings and a slingshot to cause chaos with and she is happy."

They came to a halt with the park in sight but out of earshot. "What about Stephanie?"

"She likes dancing and throwing herself into the same, almost psychotic exercises that you do. As she has gotten older and been left in this silly little town, she has taken more of an interest in the jobs that both you and the mayor perform. She dyes her hair pink because of someone she lost and," Robbie looked up, frowning. "...I like to make certain there's a new dye kit in her mailbox when her roots start showing. The first time it happened while she was here, she didn't leave the house for a week. Her friends were loud and annoying with their worry for her."

"Admit it," came a voice from off to Robbie's right. "You actually do like us."

Robbie bit down on the curse that nearly made it out of his mouth, glaring at Sportacus before turning to Stephanie. "You will never make me."

Stephanie studied him for a moment, her arms crossed over her chest, the glimmer of metallic pink thread on the cuffs of her jacket drawing Robbie's attention. "So, you're the one who gives me dye," she tilted her head, still looking him over. "Every couple of months since I moved here, it just showed up in the mailbox, wrapped in paper with my name on it."

Her arms went loose at her sides, a small smile on her face as she launched herself forward, hugging Robbie's waist tightly.

"Thank you so much!"

Robbie jerked back slightly, instinctual and concerned. His arms were held up, like he wasn't sure what to do with them. "What are you- Sportaflop, get her off me," he looked a little panicked. "What do I do here?"

"I knew you liked us!" Stephanie removed herself, grinning up at him. "You know an awful lot about us for someone who claims to hate us all the time."

Looking between the two of them, Robbie's lips pinched shut until he couldn't stand it anymore. "Fine! Maybe, perhaps, there's a _small chance_ of me possibly potentially sort of...Being not unhappy about you existing," he frowned, crossing his arms over his chest. "Are you _happy_ now?" his cheeks were flushed and he seemed nearly ready to bolt, nearly bouncing up onto his toes with the urge to run and hide. 

Her grin grew and Sportacus was warm at his side and Robbie sighed. "The both of you are going to be the death of me."

"Robbie Rotten!"

"And there's the rest of your little crew," Robbie made a face. "...Don't tell them. They'll become even more annoying than they already are."

"Don't worry," Stephanie took his hand, swinging it gently back and forth for a moment before pulling his entire arm towards Sportacus. "Your secret's safe with me. Do you want to play with us today? We're just going to have a snowball fight."

"... _Fine_ ," Robbie scowled, the small amount of glee in his eyes at being included visible only to the elf that stood somewhat closer to his height. "But if I sit down, leave me _out of it_."

"Deal!" Stephanie laughed before shrieking when a snowball hit the back of her head. "Guys!"

"Should have ducked!" Trixie called back. "Now come _on_!"

 

"Oh, this is much better," Robbie sighed as he sunk into the chair of the cafe they'd all ended up at. "Sitting down and being _lazy_. I missed this."

"You play well for someone who says he hates moving around so much," Sportacus's grin was almost wild as he leaned in closer under the pretext of making room for the children to sit at the table with them. "I wonder how lazy you actually are."

"I am the _laziest_ ," Robbie made a face at him. "That's the entire point of me being in this little town."

The elf smiled at him, the edges of his grin calmed down with affection. "Okay Robbie."

"This is so weird," Trixie nearly whined, still wiping snow out of her hair. "The both of you aren't supposed to get along. It's just...Weird! It's like the world is upside down or something. Is this what it's going to be like from now on?"

"Of course, it is," Pixel answered before either adult could, barely looking up from his video game, handheld and loud. "They're _holding hands_ , Trixie. Everyone knows that when adults hold hands, that's just how they're going to be. Like my parents," he paused his game and actually looked up. "They've been holding hands and _kissing_ since they were in high school," he looked almost warily at Robbie and Sportacus. "Are you two going to kiss?"

"Not in _front of you_ ," Robbie's face was scandalized, his hand curling tighter around Sportacus's. "I have no urge to get yelled at by the parents of Lazytown, thank you!"

"Or maybe he doesn't know how to kiss," Trixie's grin was nearly malicious.

"Trixie," Sportacus leveled a reprimanding look at her. "What Robbie does or does not know, whatever it may be, it does not allow you to make fun of him for it. It isn't fair to make fun of _anyone_ who doesn't know something. Sometimes inexperience is because they were never given an opportunity to learn. Do you have any classmates who do poorly on homework, aren't some of those students your friends? How would you feel if someone made fun of them for not understanding an assignment because they didn't know?"

"...Yeah," Trixie at least had the grace to look embarrassed. "Sorry Robbie. I didn't mean to be rude..."

"You're forgiven," Robbie's cheeks were slightly pinked, his eyebrows raised as he looked between the elf at his side and the girl sitting across from him. "You seem less awful than you all did when you were younger. What are you hiding?"

Pixel snorted a laugh out, having gone back to his game. "We're not hidin' anything! We grew up a bit and now we're looking around us a bit more carefully. Even Stingy has gotten better about sharing, which is something I thought would _never_ happen. Besides," he paused once again, a momentous occasion for the history books. "You look like you make Sportacus happy. He makes us happy and he has played with us for ages now and made sure we were never bored."

"We want him to be happy," Trixie looked down at where her hands were clasped under her knees.   
Stephanie choose that moment to return, a pot of what looked to be hot apple cider in her hands and a smiling young woman following behind her with a tray of mugs. "I got us something to drink!" she grinned as she sat down, the drink going in the middle, the tray going next to it. "Thank you, Hannah!"

"You're welcome, Stephanie! Just give me a shout if you need anything else."

"I will," the pink-wearing girl turned back to her group, glancing around. "Ziggy went off to look in the candy shop next door, Stingy headed for the bathroom. I think he had some mud on his hands and wanted to wash it off quickly."

"...What did you bring?" Robbie frowned at the pot of gently steaming liquid. "It looks like apple cider."

"It is," Stephanie grabbed a mug and held it out to him. "It's Hannah's mom's recipe, they just introduced it to the cafe. You should try some!"

"This is feeling more and more like some kind of dream," Robbie muttered as he took the mug from her and filled it. He gave the apple cider a delicate sniff, his shoulders tensed slightly as he frowned at it. "Did you do anything to it?"

"No," she laughed.

Trixie grinned. "Should she have?"

"Trix, be nice!" Pixel made a face like he was going to scold her, nearly managing to pull his eyes from the screen he held for a minute. 

Sportacus shifted at his side, the movement going mostly unnoticed by Robbie until he realized the elf was holding a mug of cider as well. "Don't drink that, Sportadoof, what on Earth are you _thinking_!?"

"The cider isn't sweetened with sugar," Stephanie tapped on Robbie's wrist to get his attention again. "I told Sportacus about it a few days ago, when Hannah's mom brought up the idea of making something he could drink. It's sweetened with honey," she laughed again. "Sportacus will be fine, as long as he doesn't drink a lot of it."

"Wait, you can eat _honey_?" Robbie stared at Sportacus, both eyebrows raised. "Since when?"

The answering shrug made Robbie want to hiss out some words he shouldn't say in front of the children. "I suppose I have always been able to," Sportacus took a slow sip of his cider, almost purring as he considered the taste. "This is wonderful. If you see her before I do, can you pass along my compliments to Hannah's mother? I like this very much."

"I will!"

Robbie sat in between the two, still looking astonished. His hands wrapped tighter around his mug and he imagined he could feel the warmth moving from the porcelain into his body. 

This, he imagined, was what having a good family felt like.

**Author's Note:**

> I have returned!
> 
> Who likes this story so far? I like this story so far, come join me in Lazytown.
> 
> Icelandic candy:  
> https://www.shopicelandic.com/collections/candy/products/noa-konfekt-1kg
> 
> Honey Apple Cider:  
> http://natashaskitchen.com/2013/10/18/honey-apple-cider/


End file.
